Â
| Saint Francis Probable Starters |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
FG% |
Note |
| G |
4 |
Marissa Shelton |
5-8 |
Jr. |
6.6 |
2.4 |
33.3 |
Averaged 9.5 ppg in previous two road games before FDU |
| G |
10 |
Ineivi Plata |
5-3 |
Fr. |
5.2 |
3.5 |
37.8 |
For 10+ point games on the road |
| G |
11 |
Harris Robinson |
5-8Â Â Â Â |
Sr. |
4.2 |
3.1 |
40.4 |
First career double-double with 16 pts, 10 rebs vs. CCSU |
| F |
12 |
Julianna Gibson |
6-2 |
Jr. |
4.9 |
2.9 |
48.7 |
Notched 10 points and six rebounds at Le Moyne |
| F |
23 Â Â Â |
Marina Artero |
5-11 |
So. |
2.0 |
3.9 |
37.7 |
Nine games with 5+ rebounds |
| Top Players Off the Bench |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
FG% |
Note |
| GÂ |
0 |
Yanessa Boyd |
5-9 |
So. |
7.2 |
3.7 |
34.0 |
Missed last two games |
| GÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â |
1 |
Kameryn Dorsey |
5-6 |
So. |
7.0 |
5.0 |
60.0 |
Out for season due to an injury |
| F |
3 |
Jade Campbell |
6-0 |
Jr. |
4.5 |
3.7 |
39.4 |
Two double-doubles on the road |
| G |
5 |
Natalie Johnson |
5-8 |
Jr. |
9.6 |
2.6 |
46.8 |
Scored career-high 25 points at Chicago State |
| G |
20 |
Airah Lavy |
5-10 |
Fr. |
6.6 |
1.0 |
35.8 |
12 points in first matchup with Lakers |
| GÂ Â Â Â |
21 |
Gemma Walker |
5-10 |
Fr. |
1.0 |
0.4 |
21.1 |
Notched career-high four points vs Le Moyne at home |
| G |
24Â Â Â Â |
Destini Ward |
5-8 |
Jr. |
--- |
--- |
--- |
Team captain in 2024-25 |
| F |
32 |
Fanta Daffe |
5-10 |
Sr. |
0.0 |
0.7 |
0.0 |
Made first careeer start against CCSU |
| F |
33 |
Giselle Eke |
6-3 |
Fr. |
1.5 |
2.2 |
26.7 |
Career-high six boards vs Stonehill |
| F |
34 |
Alary Bell |
6-2 |
So. |
4.7 |
4.1 |
52.1 |
Shooting 51.1 percent in NEC games |
SAINT FRANCIS TIDBITS IN A FLASH VS. MERCYHURST (FULL GAME NOTES PDF)
• Thursday's contest between Saint Francis and Mercyhurst will be the second ever matchup between the two schools since the Lakers joined the NEC. is the second matchup this season after the Red Flash's 70-69 victory at DeGol Arena on February 20.
• Junior
Natalie Johnson hit a game-winning layup with .4 seconds left as a part of her 19 points and sophomore
Yanessa Boyd stopped the Lakers' game-winning attempt as time expired to help guide Saint Francis to its first home playoff game since the 2019-20 season. The eighth NEC win also became the most wins in conference play since the eight tallied in the 2021-22 season.
• After the team's overtime loss to Chicago State in their last game, they are now the fourth seed while CCSU (9-6) moved up to the third seed. Saint Francis is stuck at fourth because they split their season series with CCSU, but the Blue Devils swept No. 2 Stonehill. Due to the Red Flash losing both games to the Skyhawks, CCSU earns the higher seed in the tiebreaker even if both teams finish 9-7.
• A win on Thursday would help Saint Francis clinch their 27th winning season in NEC play. It would also be the team's best mark since the 2020-21 season when that team went 12-4. That team was not able to host a playoff game, however, as the tournament bracket was cut down from eight teams to four due to COVID-19 guidelines. So, Thursday's win will improve the 2024-25 squad's record to 9-7 heading into their first home playoff game in five years.
• The squad is 3-4 on the road this season in league play with one more road game left. With a win, the team would notch its most road wins in a single season since the 2020-21 season, when the Red Flash won seven games in league play on the road.
• Saint Francis wraps up the regular season with its first trip to Mercyhurst on Thursday.Â
AN SFU WIN WOULD
• Sweep the season series with Mercyhurst
• Clinch a winning conference season for the 27th time in program history.
• Record their first winning season in conference play since 2020-21
• Improve to 9-7 in NEC play
• Give the Red Flash their 11th win of the season
 ABOUT THE LAKERS
• In their first season being a Division-I school, Mercyhurst is 9-17 overall and 6-9 in NEC play. They're currently on a three-game losing streak, with one of those losses coming to the Red Flash on February 20. However, the Lakers are 7-4 at home and 4-2 in NEC games. This includes a 76-74 win over No. 3 seeded CCSU on February 15.
• Bailey Kuhns is averaging 20.0 points per game on an efficient 50 percent field goal percentage overall and is second in the NEC in points per game during conference contests at 20.2. The facilitaor of the offense is Jenna Van Schaik, who has racked up 75 assists and also has the best free throw percentage at 79.4.
• Allyson Ross leads the team in rebounds per game (5.5), steals (45), and three pointers (44). Rounding out the stat leaders is Grace Clary, who has recorded eight blocks.
LAST TIME WE MET
• Junior
Natalie Johnson hit a layup with .4 seconds left and sophomore
Yanessa Boyd prevented the Lakers' game-winning attempt with a steal to give Saint Francis a 70-69 win on February 20.
• Johnson finished the game with 19 points and went 9-for-13 from the field.
• Freshman
Airah Lavy was deadly accurate from outside, knocking down four threes to give herself 12 points.
• The win helped the Red Flash secure their first home playoff game since 2019-20 season. Â
Â
LAST TIMEÂ OUT
•
Saint Francis lost to Chicago State in a 58-55 overtime thriller on March 1.
• Junior
Natalie Johnson poured in career highs in points (25), field goals made (11), and rebounds (9). It was her 12th double-digit scoring game of the season.
• Freshman
Ineivi Plata stuffed the stat sheet once again with 10 points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals, and one block.
• The Red Flash defense held the Cougars' offense to a field goal percentage of 28.4.
STATE OF THE NEC
• FDU leads the NEC with a 15-0 record. Stonehill sits in second place at 10-5 and will either take the second or third seed based on the outcome of their season finale against Wagner. CCSU is now third with a 9-6 record and swept the season series with the Skyhawks. With a Blue Devils' win over LIU and a Stonehill loss to Wagner on Thursday, the teams will flip flop in the standings. If both teams win or CCSU loses, the seeding will remain the same.Â
• Saint Francis are firmly in the fourth spot after their loss to Chicago State on Saturday. They will either play Le Moyne or Wagner based upon the following two scenarios. A Le Moyne victory over FDU or a Wagner loss on Thursday means the Red Flash will play the Dolphins. If the Seahawks win and Le Moyne loses, Saint Francis will face Wagner.
• The Red Flash are 2-0 against both Le Moyne and Wagner this season.
